Chapter 15 - Crossroads

{Sabrina's POV}

I stared outside the carriage, muting the ongoing conversation in my mind as I calmly tried to digest the sight i saw.

It was my first time anywhere but the county, and it felt strange that the young Lord had invited me to tag along.

I turned back towards him, watching as he craftily maneuvered his way through the conversation he was having.

To the outside world he definitely seemed like an innocent fourteen year old noble.

I wiped the thought off my mind as soon as he stared at me, shifting my gaze back towards the open road.

We arrived moments later, at the entrance of a large mansion, almost the size of the count's manor.

The building was painted white, with a fountain at the center of the land, springing forth water continuously.

The lawn around it were filled with flowers of different kinds, mildly drenched by the sprinkles of water.

I got down first, standing besides the door of the carriage and inhaling the fresh air of a wealthy environment for the first time.

It was breathtaking, the entire scenery and the very thought of living in it made me even more overjoyed.

"You like it?" Milo asked, walking towards me as he got down from the carriage.

My dress immediately felt smaller as I stared down towards my feet, feeling an awkward tension build up from within me.

There was always this foggy feeling I got whenever he spoke to me or whenever I replied him, making it hard for me to tell what exactly I was feeling at that moment.

It wasn't actually titillating to know that the person you swore absolute fealty to, was a fifteen year old psychotic killer.

"It-it's beautiful , young Lord" I finally muttered, stuttering as I spoke.

He nodded quietly after I spoke, smiling as he walked back towards Rosemary, asking her for directions.

It began to rain almost immediately, dark compelling clouds appearing out of nowhere as the rain drenched us in seconds.

We headed inside immediately after, two maids standing at the entrance, as they offered us warm towels to dry ourselves with.

The young Lord was cursing silently as he stared at the rain, but not because he was angry, rather because he wanted to stay a bit longer in it.

I could tell, because I had the same look on my face.

The inside of the building was far more decorated and fancy than the outside, making me uncomfortable from all the expensive furniture we saw.

As we walked through the balcony towards the guest house, I couldn't fight the urge to not feel the paint, so I calmly grazed the walls rhapsodically, feeling the cold sting on my skin.

We were each showed our respective rooms, mine just a room away from the young master.

"Are you feeling tired Sabrina" the young master inquired, stopping as he stared at me.

"Yes, but it's nothing at all" I replied, pretending not to feel tired.

"If it's okay with you can we have them rest, it's been a long journey" The young lord pleaded with Rosemary.

"Sure, the mayor only wants to meet you anyways " she replied, pointing towards the end of the hall.

We splited ways, as I moved into the room she had designated for me. There was a king sized bed beside the door and a dressing mirror and table on one end of the room.

It wasn't as fancy as the other rooms we had viewed, but it was probably the most decent I had ever had the privilege to sleep in, for as long as I could remember.

I slumped into the bed immediately, feeling all the pent up stress from the past days, ease up in an instant and disappear as I laid on the lush fabric.

The ceiling had odd prints on them, stretching from one end to another, until the entire square was filled.

A knock came from the door, echoing throughout the small room.

I stared at the door, reluctant to move at first, but then the thought of it being the young Lord caused me to spring up immediately, as I ran towards the door and pulled it open.

It was Natasha, and the foggy feeling that hung on my heart, disappeared at the sight of her face.

"Is there something I can help you with lady Natasha?" I offered, sitting back on the bed, my mind spiraling into oblivion.

"The young Lord wanted me to make sure you were alright. And also go give you this" She replied, handing a box over to me.

"Well then, I'll be on my way" She concluded, proceeding in the direction of the door.

As I watched her gait towards ther door, I suddenly felt a compelling urge to clarify my feelings.

"Natasha!" I called out, almost standing up.

She turned back, facing me as she stopped in her tracks.

"Yes?" Her eyes were enveloped in confusion by my call.

I didn't care what her reply was, I just wanted an answer.

"Do you trust him?. The young Lord" I asked adamantly, without considering the appropriate line of questioning.

" What do you mean by that" she inquired, standing exactly still, failing to interpret the question as I had planned she would.

" Don't worry, forget about it" i replied, pulling the duvet over myself as i laid on the bed, facing the direction of the window.

The bed sank as Natasha sat beside me, an angelic smell of perfume emanating from her and her hair.

"I may not know why you asked, but I've known the young master for most of his life, and although he's strange and secretive, he can be trusted" Her voice was quivering as she spoke, like a mother talking about her favorite child.

She got up after speaking, the sound of her footsteps rescinding as she got to the door, then stopped again.

"If you still don't believe me, then why don't you ask the young Lord yourself, you might be surprised by his reply" she ended, chucking softly.

She left then, as I felt a cold sensation in my face, trickling down from my eyes.

'Huh, why am I even crying'

Maybe because it hurt not knowing how to deal with my situation.

Even though I felt pathetic for distrusting the person who had risked his life to save me, I still needed some sort of justification to soothe my wavering heart.

It wasn't just as easy as Natasha had put it.

My background was rough, growing up without parents and a stable home till I was thirteen.

The experience left a hole in my heart that throughout the years I couldn't fill up.

Then I met the twins and got adopted by their parents, the relationship we held opening me up a little.

But in a strange turn of events, the Aslar household fell apart with the death of both parents.

The traumatic experience sealed off my heart once more, forcing me to second check every relationship I held afterwards, even causing my friends to bully me.

From there I discovered my talent for magic, fell into some bad debts and eventually met Milo.

After I met the young Lord I started experiencing some changes in my character.

Like as if I was drawn to him, even though I knew he was a ticking time bomb that might eventually eliminate me.

"So why do I get this foggy feeling whenever I'm around him" I cried, frustrated by my predicament.

Like a rat caught in a trap, I had been baited to my certain death by a false sense of safety, yet I still clung to it.

That misplaced trust borne from terror, was something I couldn't fight against.

I eventually cried myself to sleep, waking up in cold sweat and dehydrated from the prolonged crying.

As I moved to sit up, I accidentally kicked down the box Natasha had brought from Milo for me.

"Oh, i forgot about that" I chuckled, picking up the case as I opened it up gently, revealing a necklace with a high grade red mana stone with engravings at the center.

It was beautiful.

There was a note below the necklace, addressed to me at the beginning and as I read the only line inside, I sobbed quietly.

"Happy birthday, I hope this comforts you, Sabrina" it read.

I had accidentally brought it up a few days ago when we sat, dating the stars.

I hadn't expected him to interpret the date, let alone remember it at all and give me a gift.

"You just had to go and make it a lot more complicated, idiot" I scolded with no one in sight, laughing and sobbing as I spoke.